Phobia
by butterflie
Summary: He knew Auron could take on the world and easily come out on top. A measly storm was nothing to him. pre-game, ficlet


Disclaimer: Square's, not mine.

Author's Notes: It's... actually kind of distracting to write while listening to Weird Al. Anyways, another one written for the 50episodes comm on livejournal, in which you write a scene or segment of a fic based on a theme.

Phobia  
by: butterflie

All day long the air had gradually been becoming humid, hot and sticky, practically clinging to every spare inch of skin it could find. Tidus had spent the day nervously eyeing the sky as he attempted to practice his blitzball for the upcoming tryouts. The sky had been its typical murky blue, the richness of the colour overshadowed by every day machina pollution.

There hadn't been a cloud in sight.

It didn't matter. A storm was coming. He could feel it. It had been in the air all day, was still in the air even now as the sun slowly began to sink behind the tall buildings of the city. He debated on whether to keep practicing blitzball or not. The tryouts were in two weeks, and he _really_ wanted to make the team. The sooner he started playing, the sooner he had a chance of being scouted out by the professionals. He needed to spend every free moment practicing.

He really hated storms, though.

He never understood it. It had stormed an hour before they came to tell his mother that his father was missing, gone, probably never coming back. Water had still been dripping from the houseboat, the sun steadily evaporating it as his mother faced the realization that she would likely never see her husband again. He would have thought he'd been grateful to the storm, for helping to take the old man away from him, but it seemed all he could do was hate them as much as he hated Jecht.

He sighed, and shook some of the water from his hair as he decided to give up on blitz and head back to shore. If the storm turned bad, he'd need to have the houseboat secured so that it didn't get loose and drift in the sea.

Auron was waiting on the dock as he swam up, easily hauling himself out of the water. His ball he ignored; it was always a challenge to find where it wound up after a storm, and if he couldn't find it, well, he had plenty more.

"A storm's coming," Auron said, as Tidus shook even more water off.

"I know," he said quietly. "I can feel it in the air."

Auron looked at him, but didn't respond.

"I'm not afraid," Tidus answered the unspoken question. He ignored the small hint of fear in his voice, and didn't mention the anxiousness he'd been feeling all day. Really, it was just a bit of water and loud noises. There was no way he was afraid of that. Hated it, sure. Afraid... no. Of course not.

He chose not to acknowledge the disbelieving eyebrow Auron raised at his statement. He was twelve now, not seven. Storms were nothing more than an annoyance that hindered his blitz practice. That was all.

Thunder suddenly rumbled in the distance, the sound rolling all across the distance, and Tidus scowled even as he flinched in surprise. Stupid thunder. He stalked inside the houseboat, steadfastly ignoring Auron and any knowing looks that Auron might be directing his way.

A flash of lightning lit across the sky just as he stepped in the doorway, and he jumped, hitting his head on the low doorframe. It made a loud crack as it connected, and he felt tears of pain prick at his eyes, his head already pounding.

Auron was there immediately, rough hands efficiently probing for any bumps or contusions. Tidus growled in frustration and used his own hands to push ineffectively at Auron's chest, trying to make him go away. Auron was just as stubborn as he was though, and didn't let up until he was satisfied that Tidus wasn't seriously hurt.

"Geez Auron, I'm _fine_," he grumbled as Auron gently pushed him the rest of the way into the house. "I'm not a baby, you don't have to hover over me. It doesn't even hurt any more," he said truthfully. _Well, much anyways_, he amended silently.

Auron merely grunted at him. Tidus inwardly shrugged, not surprised in the least by the typical Auron response.

Another loud burst of thunder from outside shook the houseboat. Tidus' eyes widened fearfully, suddenly remembering that the houseboat hadn't been secured. But before he could remind Auron, a torrent of rain slammed into them. His eyes widened even more; he looked at Auron. "The boat..." he croaked, and started at yet another crack of lightning, one that sounded very close. It was going to be a rough storm.

He barely even noticed the curt nod Auron gave him before he went outside to properly secure the boat. Instead he dropped to the floor where he stood, curling his body into a small ball. He put his hands over his head in an attempt to block out the sounds of the storm. He fervently wished it was already over, that everything was calm outside. He no longer cared about how far they drifted from dock, as long as the storm went away.

He didn't know how long it had been before Auron was there again, leaning over him. "The boat's secure," Auron said. Tidus was surprised to find a laugh startled out of him, momentarily distracting him from his fear. Leave it to Auron to address the less important issues.

"Here," Auron said, and Tidus glanced up to find his guardian holding out a hand to him. Hesitantly, Tidus uncurled himself and reached out to take Auron's hand, but with a sudden clap of thunder he found himself clinging to Auron instead.

A moment later he let go, giving Auron a sheepish smile while inwardly he was beating himself over the head. Why did he have to act this way over a stupid storm! He was way too old for it, he wasn't a baby anymore.

Still, he let Auron lead him over to the couch, and he certainly knew better than to protest when Auron sat down stiffly and awkwardly gestured for Tidus to sit down next to him. Tidus did so carefully, gratefully curling himself against Auron's side. He already felt safer, further apart from the storm. He knew Auron could take on the world and easily come out on top. A measly storm was nothing to him. Any storm with common sense would know to run from Auron...

He woke the next morning to find a blanket draped over him and the sun shining in brightly through the windows, the sound of leftover stray rain drops pattering on the sills outside just barely audible.

Auron was nowhere in sight, but Tidus wasn't worried. He knew Auron would be there for him when needed, ready to take on any more storms that came their way. The storms would never have a chance.


End file.
